“Mum, what are you doing?”
“Shh.” I was not the leader of the fey, not really. They asked, I declined, but I figured I should at least try that angle before unleashing any of my magic. Not much could kill me now days—a logaras demon spike one of the few things—but I was pretty sure I could still be controlled by a banshee. My mind never was my strongest suit.
The banshee seemed to consider my statement for a moment before opening her mouth and letting out a long, almost inaudible breath. In moments five others stood at her side. All of them women, all of them with impossibly black hair and pale skin. In contrast to the other, each of them wore a red cloak tied around the neck.
“Thank you for agreeing to meet with me,” I began, shrugging off Ava’s clutch on my arm and moving Madel from my shoulder to hers. “I am Desmoree, leader of the fey. The demons are seeking to open the gateway to the human world, and if they succeed, they will turn to the fabled worlds next.”
They remained still, their eyes locked on me but their faces gave away nothing.
“I did not mean to arrive unannounced, my daughter is—new. But I am glad she has brought us here. To seal the mouth of hell and stop the demons from entering the human world we will need a rock from the palace walls. Could you please help us?”
I felt my body go cold and saw one of the banshees lips purse.
“Mum, what is happening?”
“They can’t speak to me without possibly hurting or enthralling us, I don’t think we can communicate normally. Ava, how did you get her to heal me?”
“I didn’t, she just showed up. She saw you and then her eyes teared up and she collected a tear on her finger, placed it on your wound, and that was it.”
I tried to wrack my brain about how to communicate with banshees.
“Humans can call them forth and communicate when they wanted to smite someone. But there isn’t anyone I want to smite. Well, that isn’t entirely true. Jax’s parents could do with a little smite.”
Oh, the logaras demons! Those things could go right to hell. I thought to myself, smiling at the idea of those monsters burning in the fires of hell.
The five red cloaked banshees all smirked.
“That will do nicely,” the first said, her voice sweet and angelic. “Now, we can get to the bottom of this.”
“Mum, did you smite Jax’s parents?”
“No, dear,” the banshee said. “Her desire for the retribution on the logaras was sufficient for our conversing with her freely.”
“But she didn’t say the logaras.”
I placed my hand on Ava’s shoulder. “Banshees can read thoughts. It is how they get humans to smite people which probably wouldn’t happen if they asked out loud.”
The red cloaked ones raised their eyebrows in unison and I shuddered.
“Umm, sorry, not that what you do is bad. It is just, you know, sometimes people don’t mean what they say. Or don’t say. What they think. Man, I have a headache.”
“Calm down Desmoree, we do not take offence so easily.”
“Thank you for saving me,” I began, and smirked towards the banshee who had actually done the saving. “Could I please have one of the rocks of your palace to add to the binding spell?”
“Why should we assist with your task when the demons seek to end human existence? This is something we too desire.”
“Why would you want that? Besides, they won’t stop at the human world. All of us will be affected by the darkness. The gateway will reveal them all.”
“Yes, and we will be free to help them.”
I stepped back and in front of Ava more. “Why would you help them? Banshees are not in the business of killing humans for no good reason.”
“That was before the coven of souls.”
“The coven of souls!” Ava called, a spark of recognition in her eyes. “They are the ones trying to open the portal, the new ones talking to me in my head. The coven of souls.”
The banshees all scowled at Ava.
“She isn’t one of them,” I said, bringing my magic out of the ends of my fingers a little to create tiny sparks of electricity that danced between the tips. “What has the coven done to you?”
“They have found a way to destroy a banshee. We have lost hundreds.”
“Seriously, hundreds? How the hell did they find a way to destroy you? I thought banshees were immortal.”
“So did we. But they have found a way to drain our life force, to suck us dry as it seems.”
It sounded like how Traflier had syphoned the magic of his people, how I had defeated him by draining his life force.
“I might be able to help you.”
Their expressions went from angry to blank in an instant.
“How?”
“The coven might have learned how to do this from a fey, an evil fey who used a similar power to drain his own kind of their magic and even at times their life.”
“Then how will you know how to help us?”
“Because I used the same power to kill him. Afterwards I wanted to find a way to protect the Fey from this ever happening again. And I did. I made a potion that binds the fey’s magic to them, it should do the same for you.”
“Very well, make us this potion, then if it works, you can have your rock. But if you fail, we will not help you. Instead you will all remain here, and be made to watch the destruction of your beloved humans.”
The consequence was enough to make me hesitate. “Deal.”
It didn’t take long to make the potion. I had done it so many times over the past few weeks. I had shown Maylea how to make it too, and together we were building quite a stockpile. It was my intention to hand it out to all the Tanzieth once I returned their magic, so it could never be taken again But as I still hadn’t found a way to return their powers, we hadn’t used any of it, except to test it, and that we only did on flowers and fruits. It works on an elderberry, now I pray it works on a banshee.
I could just grab some from home, I thought as I mixed in one of the smellier ingredients turning the sludge a moss green. The silent banshee that saved me stood nearby watching everything I did so she would be able to make it herself. There was just one problem with that idea; only I held the final ingredient. Even Maylea wouldn’t be able to finish the spell without me.
I turned my back to the banshee and, taking a small needle, pricked the end of my finger. I felt my magic rise to heal it, and as it reached the end I pushed both it and a drop of blood out.
My blood and magic fell into the pot and the whole thing turned red.
“It is done.”
I stood aside so the silent one could see. She hovered over the potion for a moment before frowning.
“How do I know it will do what you say?” she whispered, her voice so much harsher than the others had been. It was like she had a really bad cold or something.
“I will prove it works, but only when I have the rock.”
She nodded.
“What is your name, by the way?”
“Caro,” she said, reaching down and pulling several glass bottles from beneath the table. “This is my place, I am the apothecary.”
“But you are a banshee.”
“Yes.” A sly smirk stretched her face.
“So—banshees also create potions?”
“Yes, all the fabled can harness the magics. We can’t cast, but we can mix elixirs. Our control of a human’s fate, still the central ability of us all, but we each delve into other aspects if we are so inclined.”
“And you like this stuff?”
“I do. Come, we will go to the others, you can collect your daughter and your rock.”
Ava wanted to wait with Madel as they both continued to try to portal out of the banshee kingdom. It was no use, if they didn’t want us to leave, we were not going anywhere.
Maybe they just didn’t want to come into the palace, this place is really freaky, after all.
Caro led me through dark passages towards a red glo
wing light.
When we reached the end of the passage it opened into a throne room of sorts. Instead of holding a central or duel thrones, the circular room was surrounded by seats. Each one rose out of the earth seamlessly, the entire palace carved from one enormous stone. Veins of red ran through the floor all the way up to the pointed ceiling, where they twisted together to create a vine-like chandelier, glowing the room red.
“Caro where is—?” I began to ask but in a blur the room filled with banshees, most of them cloaked in deep blue. The six in red were littered in seats throughout, and Ava and Madel stood in the middle of the room looking shaken but otherwise unharmed.
“I have your potion,” I said, holding up a single bottle as Caro made her way around the room handing out the elixir. “I can prove to you that it works if you have something living. A flower, or something?”
One of the red cloaked ones waved her hand in Caro’s direction. “You may try it on her.”
“You don’t know it works, why would you ask me to do such a thing?”
“Caro has been touched by the coven already, if your elixir works she will be healed and you will have your rock. If it doesn’t—”
She waved her other hand and the floor in the centre of the room began to open.
“Ava,” I called, and she ran towards me. As the floor opened beneath her my magic surged, forced my phase and my wings wrapped around her and Madel. I lifted them up and brought them closer.
“I said I might be able to help, and I meant from future draining. I have no idea if it can help someone already affected.”
“Let us find out,” Caro said, her voice somehow even harsher than before.
She threw back her head and downed an entire bottle of the potion. She began to sway. Her eyes closed, and she stumbled from foot to foot. The banshees did nothing but watch her. All of them intently eyeing their Guinee pig as they clasped their own bottles firmly in hand.
“Caro, are you okay?” I asked, but she just stumbled again. I moved towards her, phasing back to my normal form as I did. When I reached her, I froze. I didn’t want to, I wanted to touch her, to take her shoulders and see for myself if she was okay. But something was stopping me. Or someone.
I moved the only part of me that would move. My eyes. I scanned the room and my gaze fell on one of the red cloaked ones. She tilted her head and squinted at me, a warning not to go any further. Not that I could anyway.
I remained frozen as I waited along with the rest of them. Caro swayed some more, stumbled again, then dropped to her knees, her head in her hands against the red veined floor.
Her back began to heave up and down jolting in spasm as she took harsh cracking breaths. After only a few, they became fainter, and with each rise and fall of her chest the sound escaping her throat eased. Softened. Until her body moved gently with no sound at all.
The force holding me back released and I almost fell forwards.
“Caro, are you okay?” I asked, lowing to a crouch and slowly reaching out my hand.
“Yes,” came her sweet reply. Her harsh broken voice, now soft as a melody.
The red cloaked ones all stood in sync and downed their potions. Their bodies didn’t stumble or fall, but each did sway slightly, their eyes closing before jolting open in time with a heaved silent breath. They nodded to the others and they too drank.
“You have done as you promised, and so we too will hold true to our word,” said one of the red cloaked banshees. “You may have your rock of the palace.”
She reached down and the floor drew up to meet her hand in a fluid spike that rose seamlessly. The red veins of the floor followed the stone up, twisting around the spike then at the top, forming a round red veined ball.
She clasped her hand over the ball and broke it free. Instantly the spike descended to the floor below, only the circle engraved in the surface was proof something happened at all.
I held out my hand, but she walked towards Ava and Madel. Ava’s eyes shot to me and I smiled, trying to ease her fear.
They had no reason to hurt us now, they had what they needed.
“You are an odd one,” the red cloaked one said, taking Ava’s hand and placing the palace rock in it. “Do not portal here uninvited again, as you will not be spared a second time.”
Ava nodded, and Madel ran up her back to stand on Ava’s shoulder, glaring at the banshee.
“And you, little hytersprite, should know better.” She turned again to Ava. “How you called a portal to here, I still don’t understand.”
“I am made of more,” Ava said sweetly and before I could stop her, she phased into her fey form, complete with Angel wings.
The red cloaked one gasped. I tried to move but I was frozen in place again. The powers of the banshees at work yet again.
For fucks sake let me go. I did what you wanted. I was powerless to help Ava. My eyes wild with rage trailed over her and then squinted in confusion as they gleamed a red light illuminating faintly from beneath where Ava’s wings met with her back.
The banshee saw it too, and turned Ava, bringing her wing up as high as she could. The red veins of the palace also ran beneath the skin of my daughter.
“How?” the red one asked, and Ava lowered the wing, changing back in the same breath.
“I told you, I am made of more,” Ava said again, this time looking at me. Ava tilted her head in that familiar way then giggled.
The red cloaked one released me. I darted to Ava’s side. Madel jumped onto my shoulder, quickly ducking behind my hair.
“We must leave, thank you for the rock. I hope that now you will reconsider helping the dark ones when they break through.”
“When?” Caro asked, frowning at me.
“May we have your permission to leave?” I asked, ignoring Caro’s question entirely.
The red ones nodded and I turned to Ava. “Can you portal us to my room in Landown?”
She brightened instantly. “Can I change my shoes?”
“Ava, really, there are more important—”
She frowned and her bottom lip pushed out, the corners of her mouth dropping slightly.
“Fine, you can change shoes, but not—”
“Not the blue ones, got it.”
Ava tried to create a portal, but each swing of her arm made the wonky oval of red sparks collapse in further.
“I am sorry, Mum,” she said, dropping her arm after her final failed attempt.
Caro came closer. “We can create a portal for you to return, but be warned, it can be painful to pass through.”
“Thanks, can you send us to Baldea?”
“We can send you wherever you like.”
I looked back to the banshees, all of them had eyes on Ava. “I will accept any punishment you see fit to give the logaras, but not any price. What do you seek from me in return for your service?”
They all smiled at me in unison, it was completely creepy. I gripped Ava’s hand a little tighter.
“Consider this one on the house,” Caro said, then her mouth closed, as did all of the others. Our deal struck, the ability to communicate ceased. Two of the red cloaked ones moved towards us, joined hands with each other, then squatted, keeping their clasped hands on the ground between them. As they rose, a red thread ascended with them. It ran from the ground of the castle, to their closed hands. They pushed their hands up then out and between them a portal formed; through it was my bedroom in Baldea. I grabbed Ava’s hand and pulled her through with me. Madel clung to my hair.
A thousand needles prickled my skin and I struggled not to scream. Ava did scream. And once through she fell to her knees and began brushing the imaginary prickles from her skin. Madel appeared unharmed and swung happily from a bunch of my hair. It had hurt like hell, but we were back in the lands of the fey and that was what mattered most.
But the sky was shining in an afternoon glow.
Bloody hell, how long were we in the banshee kingdom? Have I only lost a day? How much time do I have to g
et him out now? It took me a moment to count it out. We had five days. Think Des... We have just over two left. Two days to save him. Two days to doom the world.
Ava stood, her hands still wrapped around my tattered dress and looked towards the wardrobe.
“Go on then.”
I nodded in the direction of all of my clothes. She dashed into my closet and Madel pulled at my earlobe.
“What is it?” I asked, taking her off my shoulder and holding her in front of me in my hands.
“Can you try to return us now?” she asked, her sweet childish voice strained on the brink of tears.
I didn’t know if I could, but a deal was a deal and Ava was found and safe. I placed Madel down on the end of the bed and called forwards my magic. First, I tried to pull the power from Shulun and send it to Madel. But the sky would not yield.
I then tried to draw its magic into me so I could transfer it to Madel, but again it wouldn’t work.
Frustrated, Madel kicked her legs and threw herself back onto the bed.
“A tantrum won’t help you, I am trying.”
“You said if I helped you—”
“I know what I said. I thought I could return it, but it is its own entity now. It has been completely separated from you all. But I can try something else.”
I tried to channel it again, but this time I brought down a fibre of the sky. A link like my grandmother once had. When the link joined to Madel’s light, she vibrated, bouncing from foot to foot. Then in a breath her entire body swelled to the size of a small child, maybe a five year old.
She squealed before shrinking back to her tiny sprite size.
I looked for the link, it was still there.
“Try again.”
Her eyes squinted and she pursed her lips. Then just as her expression fell the vibration of the light happened again and she grew again.
Still child size, bugga.
“Oh Des it is fantastic.” She said twirling on her tippy toes, and her sheer golden skirt held in a pinch at either side billowed out as she turned.
“You like it then? I mean it isn’t what you had but it kind of worked.”
“It is better than what we had before. Now I can be bigger and the sky can still sparkle. Thank you again.”
Uniting The Fabled Page 16
